When you look at the statistics for those from 16 to 19 years old, it’s clear that they are problematic drivers. Their fatal accident rates are incredibly high, the highest of any age group. They cause a lot of car accidents and make many driving mistakes.
As a result, there are those who believe that we should increase the driving age. Maybe 16 is simply too young. If drivers had to be 21 years old, would it help?
The case for increasing the driving age
There is one case for increasing the driving age, which is simply that young people do not have a fully formed prefrontal cortex. Brain development doesn’t end until around 25 years of age. This means that young drivers may be more likely to make rash decisions. They may not fully understand the dangers that they face.
Increasing the driving age by any amount would simply give them more time for development and that may make them better drivers. Raising the age to 21 would give them five extra years of development.
The case against it
Unfortunately, the fact of the matter is that inexperience leads to a lot of these car accidents. Young people crash so often because they haven’t been driving for very long and they’re still developing the skill. As with any other skill, this means they’re going to make mistakes while doing so.
As such, increasing the driving age may not make any difference at all. People would simply be gaining that critical experience at a later time.
What to do when accidents and injuries happen
If you’ve been injured by another driver when they caused an accident, you need to know how to seek financial compensation. No matter what the other driver’s age or experience level, you shouldn’t have to bear the financial burden of their mistake.
